Second Chance
by markaleen
Summary: After her trial, Roxie goes home to Amos, hoping he will take her back. Here, she also reflects on her moment of fame. One-shot.


**This is my first story for Chicago :) (based off of the stage production... I don't see a category until Plays/Musicals for it so I'm posting it here). Roxie may be a bit OOC, but I tried my best keeping her true to the character. I like to think she had some sort of growth by the end. Hope you enjoy!**

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"Amos?" Roxie called as she entered the living room. It felt good to be home. She had definitely lived in that jail cell for too long. While she had been there, she hadn't thought once about where she would go once she was out. Perhaps she simply assumed that her newfound celebrity status would take care of things. Now, of course, the status was lost. After licking her wounds, she thought about her husband's offer to come home, and made her way back. The walk had been a long one. She worried that Amos might have changed his mind after finding out that there was no baby. Then again, he had also said that he still loved her…

Amos was sitting on the sofa. His tie was undone, and his shirt was untucked. In one hand, he held a cigarette, in the other, a beer. Roxie rarely saw him drink – only ever on weekends, and even those times were few and far between. All in all, he looked a mess (another thing she didn't usually see). There was a long pause after he looked up, but eventually, he responded. "Yeah?"

Cautiously sitting down next to him, Roxie began. "I'm real sorry, Amos… I'm sorry about everything that's happened. I'm sorry that you had to sell everything to pay for that lousy Billy Flynn. I'm sorry that I ignored you, and most importantly, I'm sorry for faking the baby… and for cheating."

With a swig of his beer, he interrogated, "Why did you do it, Roxie?" He sighed. "Did I ever treat you wrong? Wasn't I always good to you?" Deep down, he knew the answer. He knew that he wasn't the most handsome man in the world, nor the world's greatest lover. On top of that, he wasn't the best provider either. He did the best he could, but he knew that she deserved more. Fixing cars just wasn't enough. This whole fiasco had been his fault. Seeing as Roxie was just about the only person who ever paid him any attention, he should have done more to keep her happy and at home.

"I…" She started answering his questions, but she just couldn't finish. The truth was not an option seeing as she needed a place to sleep tonight. Going by the look in Amos' eyes, she sensed he already knew her reasons anyway. In time, she settled on saying, "I made a mistake… many mistakes. I do hope you will forgive me. I really want us to move forward."

"How do I know you won't do it again?"

Silence came over her. Normally, this would be a situation where she would continue to lie. After everything that happened due to Fred Casely though, she knew it was far too soon to start fibbing about these matters again – especially since he was the one person left on her side. "Amos, I can only promise you my best."

Taking a long, but quiet, breath, he replied, "I guess that'll have to do."

"So, I can come home?" she asked hopefully.

"Yeah," he nodded lightly. "You can come home."

For clarification, she queried, "Even though there's no baby?"

Taking her hand, Amos assured, "I meant it when I said I still love you."

Roxie couldn't help but feel guilty about his kindness towards her. Aloud, she wondered, "Oh, how can you still love me? I've been awful to you."

"Because," he explained. "You've still treated me the best." It pained him to say those words, but they were true.

Without another question or statement, Roxie rested her head on Amos' shoulder. She truly wanted to start over. Unfortunately, she couldn't trust herself to change. Completely altering your personality takes time – and it certainly isn't an easy thing to promise. How could she ever give up her dreams of fame? Had life gone on as usual, she would have continued thinking her chances had passed her by. Now that she'd had a taste… Oh, how could all those people just forget about her? Sure, she had learned how quickly the attention could shift. When that Kitty girl came in with the story of her homicide, Roxie had been swiftly forgotten. She'd managed to put herself back in the spotlight though. There had to be some way to do it again… Maybe Velma could help; if she didn't hang, of course. Though, with the way crime in Chicago was going, she was sure to get off as well as she had. Didn't she say that she and her sister had an act? Hadn't she tried to get her to take the sister's place? A double act wasn't exactly the way she wanted to claim her fame, but did she really have any other choice? Committing another murder would, of course, be the fastest way back to the top, but ultimately, she might not get so lucky a second time around. She would have to take what she could get; even if it meant sharing the limelight with Velma Kelly.

Yes, she was going to give both Velma and Amos a second chance. True, she would have to change some of herself, but maybe not **so** much. At least for a while she could remain faithful to Amos. It was the least she could do to thank him. He really was a great man for sticking by her… even if he **had** been the one to rat her out in the first place. Things would have been so much easier had he stuck to the story they'd agreed upon before the cops arrived. Then, if only she had thought up a new story after he spilled instead of admitting the cold truth. Oh well, it didn't matter anymore. No one cared about what really happened. Billy was right: crime is pure show business. He was also right about fame being fleeting. According to him, her fifteen minutes were up, and he'd gotten all that he could from her.

In this moment, as she was tightly held in Amos' arms, she resolved to prove Billy wrong – to prove the world wrong. The citizens of Chicago hadn't heard the last of Roxie Hart.

The end.


End file.
